Radio receiving apparatus



Patented Dec. 13, 19.27.

ADOLPH ALEXANDER THOMAS, OFv NEW YORK, N. Y.

nemo 'nncnrvme APPARATUS.'

"Applicants mea may 2o, 1922. serial No. 562,278.

My invention relates in Cgeneral to theJ art of reproducing sound an adapted for radio reception.

5 In radio-receiving outts,

its object is to provide anew and improved .apparatusit has been suggested to use indoor loop aerials or antennae Where outdoor aerials could not be installed,:as, for houses, hotel rooms, etc. heretofore constructed, was

instance, in apartment The loop aerial, as a separate piece of apparatus, quite as muchas an outdoor aerial, and it required not only additional4 space, but exposed Wire connections to the l rest of the radio outfit.

radio receivers, especially apartments of cit dwellers,

In fact, one of the worst objections to in Ythe small has been their unsightlinessn .With a longv box, a set of batteries, 'a loop, a loudspeaker,

and exposed wiring, scattered all over the room and collecting dust, radio-receiving outfits made an apartment look like a were highly objectionable, housewi e.

reasons. In the first place,

l tioned, sightly found at best, for which a place in the room. Besides, separate laboratory and especially to the A. separate loop is undesirable for several as already men-l it is an individual mechanism, 'un-A must be` loops are expensive, since they retplnre a special frame and Stand. Then, t

e connecting wires from the loop to the receiving set are necessarily exposed able length, perhaps running' room. Svuch of app-reciable length,

and may be of consideracross the wires, particularl if they are are liab e to act as .a

horizontal receiving antenna and thus interfere with the proper operation of the loop.

Furthermore, it is known that leads in a J 40 radio frequency circuit have lnherent capacity. Now, lthe capacity of leads running 'from a separate loop4 to a receiving set may -have an unbalancing effect on the loop. If a person should disarrange the wires, as may easily happen with exposed long connectlons in a room, turbed and the set may bet tune.

Now, according to my invention,

their .inherent capacityv is dis rown out o I incorporate theV loop aerial and preferably lalso the amplifying horn in other where y. a single piece of househo a cabinet carrying arts 'of the radio-receivmg a paratus,

line and compr1se a front -ture constitutes a ycomplete loudspeaking radio-receiving unit. This may be made as' self-'contained as a phonograph cabinet, with available space and therefore does not in-V crease the size of the cabinet. The moldin that conceals the loop Wires is preferab y made to harmonize with the design of the cabinet, so that seemingly it is nothing more than a permanent part of the cabinet. In one embodiment of my invention, as herein illustrated and described by way of example, the cabinet is of the upright ty e rotatableon a base, so that the loo may Ee readily adjusted into the right direction. Any practical form and desivn of cabinet may be used in carrying out the underlying idea of my invention.

l In' order to explain my invention to those skilled in the art, I shall describe in detail the construction illustrated 'in the accompanying drawings, in which Figurel is a view in isometric perspective vshowing a cabinet constructed in accordanceA 'with my invention, certain parts broken away for clearness; and

Fig. 2 is a vertical cross-section, on an enlarged scale, of the cabinet shown in Fig. 1.

The outer framework or body of the cabinet shown in the drawings is indicated as a whole by C. The outer upright walls of this cabinet are substantially rectangular in outwall 1, sides 2 and 3, and a back Wall 4. When I use the terms front and back, I do so merely in a relative sense, for it is immaterial which is considered the front and which the back of the cabinet. The body of the cabinet is preferably constructed of wood or other suitable non-metallic material.

.Along the rearedge or outline of the cabinet is a groove or recess 5 in which is mount ed a loop antenna or aerial indicated asa whole lby L. vIn the instance illustrated, the antenna consists of a number of loops of wire of suitable conducting material, the

being lot loops being out of electrical contact `with each other. As indicated in Fig. 1, the loop antenna L follows generall the edge or outline of one side of the cabinet and is in the form of a rectangle. Obviously, if the outline of the cabinet is other than rectangular,

the form of the .loop will vary accordingly..

The antenna L is preferably covered with a non-metallic strip or strips 6, whichv may be in the form of an ornamental molding of wood or other suitable material. In this way the antenna is concealed ,from view and be'- comes to all intents and purposesv an integral part of the cabinet itself. It will thus be seen that the supporting frame for the loop wires is part of the cabinet structure, thereby eliminatin the cost of a separate loop frame and ad ing to the compactness of the cabinet as a whole.

The cabinet C is provided with a soundl amplifier, which is shown in the formof a built-in horn 7 open at the front of the cabinet. The inner or smaller end 8 of the horn 7 terminates in the top board 9 ofthe cabinet for permitting ready attachment of a telephone receiver 10. i

In the lower portion of the cabinet there is a chamber 11, which may for convenience extend across the cabinet from front to back..

11 is mounted a suitable radio-receiving set' indicated as a whole by R. `As there are many kinds and styles of such' sets on the market, ranging in price from a few dollars to several hundred dollars, and as the construction and o eration of thesesets are well understood, I dh not consider it necessar to show or describe any structural details o the set R, particularly since the construction of this set does not in and of itself form any part of my invention. It will, therefore, be understood thatthe set R is representativev of any suitable form or type of radio receiving' set. `The specific location and arrangement of the compartment or recess for supporting the radio setin the cabinet, oi' within the outer contines thereof, are immaterial and will naturally vary in accordance'with the size, style and design of the cabinet.

, In the rear p'art of chamberll arebatteries E, which may be taken as indicative of any suitable type of radio batteries on the market. Batteries E may include a so-called A or filament batter and a B or plate battery, for use in sets aving vacuum tubes. As the installation'an'd use of these batteries are well known in the art, I need say nothing further about them.

It goes without saying that loop antenna L, radio set R and receiver 10 are properly connected in circuit with batteries E. As these connections (or hook-ups, as they are popularly called) are well understood, even by the vast army of radio amateurs, it will notv be necessary to show or describe them.4

site ends of loop L tojappropriate bin ing posts jz/ on radio set R. It is usual to shunt a variable condenser across the loop terminals for tuning, as radio experts will understand. When the cabinet is sold with the radio set R installed therein, the set is permanently connected with the loop.A By this I do not mean lthat the electrical connections between the set and the loop are inseparable (for they maybe veryeasily disconnected if they lead to binding posts), but simply mean that, in the fully equipped cabinet containing loop and radio set, theser two are operatively connected together.

It has been found that'in the use of loop antennae, the reception of radio transmission is most satisfactory when the plane of the loop isin the direction of the transmitting station; or, to put it dierently, when the horizontal turns of the loop point toward the transmitting station. In order to permit a quick and easy adjustment of the loop antenna L' in the proper direction, I mount the cabinet C in this particular embodiment .of

my invention so as to rotateon a base D. Any practical rotary connection between cabinet and base may be adopted. In Figs.

1 and 2, I have shown a central pin or'stud l0-5 13 passing from the bottom of the cabinet into or througlithe base, with suitable antifriction rings 14 interposed. In this way,

the cabinet (which may have considerable weight) is easily turned until the antenna L points in the right direction.` If desired, cabinet C may have a lid for the top and a door for the front. Fig. 2 shows a lid 15,

which is omitted in Fig. .1 for the sake of clearness. i v

In the operation of a loop as a receiving antenna, the effective portions are the sides, ywhether vertical. or oblique. At least, that is the prevailing theory today. In the construction of cabinet shown in Figs. 1 and 2,

the height of the loop is approximately equal to the heightl of the body ofthe cabinet. This provides a loop of maximum receiving power, and yet occupying no space,'practi cally speaking.

As will be clear to those skilled in this art. a large loop with 4few that, my new radio cabinet4 combines eiiciency with coinpactne'ss in a high degree.

As radio sets and batteries possess considthe preferred embodiment, all the parts rable weight, it is preferable to mount them onI diametricall opposite sides of the pivot point of the ca inet,as shown in Fig.-2, sov

that their weights counterbalance each other.

It will be seen fromthe foregoing Ithat my invention provides a unitary self-contained structure in the form'of a cabinet, which in itself, when properly equipped, constitutes a portable radio-receiving statlon in the shape of a siiigle piece of furniture. The practical advantages of this construction will be apparent to those skilled in the radio art.

set, thereby obviating long and exposed wiring, which is highly objectionable, as' previously explained. Also, by mounting the loop wires on the cabinet structure itself, no separate supporting frame for the loop is required. Thus, itis clear that by incorporating the loopvin the cabinet, the operation of the radio set is simplified` nd improved, aside from the advantages. of eliminating a separate piece of apparatus. Where the entire cabinet. rotates, as in the form shown `in the drawings, the relation of loop an'd radio set remains fixed, thus obviating the disturb.

effect liable to be produced when a loo in is odily adjusted relatively to the set itsel y rlhe cabinet of my'invention may in 1ts outward appearance be as ornamental land elaborate as in the cabinet as shown, the vertical sides of the loop are practically equal to the height of the main body ofthe cabinet. This provides a loo of maximum receiving power, since the e ective portions of a loop are Ithe vertical sides. vFrom the viewpoint of manufacture, it will perhaps be preferable to place.

the cabinet in the market with its full equipment-of radio set, telephone receiver and batteries, in addition to the antenna which is practically apart of the cabinet itself. The cabinet may, however, be sold without the first-named parts, leaving it to the individual purchaser to put his own favorite ty e of radio set, receiver and battery in the ca inet. In that event, the terminals of the loop antenna are left in lposition for ready connection with the radio set and batteries.

In the broader aspect of my invention, when I speak of the cabinetbeing provided with a recess for receiving a loop antenna in its structure, I mean an practical construction roviding a space or receiving lthe loop in t e framework of the cabinet as a permanent part of its structure.

'Iheparticular construction of the aninto one o1 more loops.

that

desired. By mounting the loop tenna itself is immaterial. It may comprise one or more loops of wire. as shown, or 1t v may consist of a metallic strip or bar bent So that, when I Speak of a loop aerial or broader aspect of my invention, I mean .any form of conducting membcror members adapted to be mounted substantially within the outer framework of the cabinet and constructed to act as a receiving' antenna. When I ,speak of 'the framework of ,the cabinet, I include of course such outer doors or panels as the'cabinet may'have.

.As far as y duce avhousehold cabinet as a complete and self-contained loudspeaking radio-receiving unit in which the loop isvconcealed -as a permanent part vof the cabinet structure, and I,

claim this construction in a fundamental way.

Although I have illustrated and described a certain specific construction, 1I want it understood that I have done so ymerely to explain my invention and not by way of limitation or restriction. It will be obvious that the various features of my invention may be mechanically carried out in other ways than those herein set forth by way of illustration. f

What I y'claim is:

1. In a rotatably mounted radio receiving cabinet, means for mounting a loop antenna antenna in the I know, I 'am the first to prol comprising a recess formed along a substantially rectangular edge of the outer structure of said cabinet, wires in said recess to form a receiving loop,"and a molding forming part of the outer cabinet structure for covering said recess, whereby said loop is invisibly incorporated into the framework ofthe cabinet.

2. Ina radio receiving cabinet, means for mounting a loop antenna com rising a recess formed along a subst-antia ly rectangular edge of the cabinet structure, wires in said recess to form a receiving loop, means for permanently covering said recess to conceal the loop wires in all positions, and means where y said loop is rotatable into the desired receiving position.

3. In a rotatable radio receiving cabinet,`

a loop antenna comprising wires woundon the outer framework of the cabinet, and means forming a permanent part of the cabinet framework for permanently consisting ofwires running along'said molding and permanently concealed thereby.

5. In a radio receiving cabinet, an outer framework havingA a recess formed along a y.

polygonal edge thereof, wires in said recess to form a receiving loop, and means forming part of the cabinet structure for cover'` framework, said loop being ermanently in; in? said recess, Wherebysaid loop is -invisvisible outside and inside t e cabinet, and ib y and ermanently incorporated into the means for swinging said vertical loop hori- 10 framewor of the cabinet. `zontally to adjust the same into the desired 6.v A cabinet having a radio loop mounted receiving position.

' in a. Vertical plane on the outer framework of the cabinet as a permanent part of said ADOLPH ALEXANDER THOMAS. 

